White Bean & Pine Nut Stuffed Artichokes

Once you get the knack of cleaning out a fresh artichoke, it really isn't so hard. Just make sure you scrape out all the little hairs in the center and discard many of the tough outer leaves. There will be a lot of waste but that's just the nature of a good artichoke.

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Creamy white beans, garlic, fresh rosemary and toasted pine nuts make a perfect, hearty filling to all the great fresh artichokes you find during the summer.

White Bean & Pine Nut Stuffed Artichokes
serves 3
2 lemons, divided
3 artichokes 2 tbl extra virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
1 shallot, minced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbl minced fresh rosemary leaves
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 cup pine nuts
1-15 oz can white beans, drained and rinsed
2 cups vegetable broth
1 cup white wine
1 tbl nutritional yeast, for sprinkling

Prepare a large bowl of water with the juice of 1 lemon for the artichokes to sit in while you are cutting them up. This will prevent them from turning brown.
Cut off the top 1-2 inches of the artichoke and remove the stem. Set the stem aside to use in the filling. Peel off the tough, outer green leaves of the artichoke (I took the first 3 layers off).
Spread the leaves of the artichoke apart gently and scoop out the hairy choke in the center. Once clean, place in the lemon water until all of the artichokes are done. Cut off the tough outer green skin on the stems and dice.

In a saute pan, sweat the shallots until tender and translucent, 5-7 minutes. Add the garlic, rosemary, salt, red pepper flakes, and black pepper and toast until the garlic is golden brown. Add the pine nuts and continue to cook until the pine nuts have toasted. Add the white beans and toss to combine. Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed.
Tightly pack each artichoke with bean mixture.
In pot large enough to hold the artichokes, combine the broth and white wine and bring to a boil. Add the artichokes and cover. Cook for 25 minutes, checking after 15 to make sure you still have enough liquid at the bottom of the pan.
Serve with a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkling of nutritional yeast.